“I need your help.” she told me. “Sure what can I do?” “I just fired Jennifer as you saw. I need you to fill in for her on Monday morning.” “But Lucy I'm a cleaner it would seem too suspicious.” “I don't care!” she said slightly raising her voice. “I don't care.” she repeated more calmly. “I need someone to fill in last minute and I don't have anyone else. I'll straighten it out with Frederico.” “Okay.” I said reluctantly. “Besides it will just be a day or two at the most.” I nodded. “You're a lifesaver Max, really, thank you.” she said looking at herself in the mirror. “Are you alright Lucy?” I asked her. “No.” she said starting to cry. I handed her the tissue box and she took one. “I know David and I have our problems but I never thought he would seriously cheat on me with her and at my party? He's got some nerve.” she cried. I wanted to console her but she was my employer and it didn't feel appropriate. The more she cried the more I felt compelled to give her a hug or something. But then suddenly she was done crying. She patted her face dry, put on more lipstick, pulled her hair back into the tight bun she was wearing and said the show must go on. But when we left the ladies room there was no one out there except Knight, Hall and Hall employees and Lance.
It felt awkward that I would be the one walking out of the ladies room with her since I was technically not her employee. But she gained control of the situation like a true business woman. “I'm sorry everyone for the display you saw earlier. I'm sorry the party looks as if it ended earlier than expected but thank you all for coming.” she told them. I scanned the room for David but he was no where in sight. I couldn't help but wonder if he went to find Jennifer. I also noticed everyone's eyes on me. I took Lance's hand and we headed out. The valet brought our car around, we got in and drove off. “So that was interesting.” Lance said. “Yes it was.” I sighed happy to be out of there. “What did she want to talk to you about?” “She asked me to fill in for Jennifer for a couple days next week.” “For real? Won't that look suspicious?” “I thought so too but she said she didn't care.” “Well I hope she knows what she's doing.” he said. “So do I.” When we got home Lance took my shoes off for me and poured me a glass of wine. “I'm thinking you might need this.” “You're thinking right.” I took a long sip. Lance took his jacket and tie off and sat down next to me unbuttoning his shirt. “What did I get myself into babe?” I asked him. “This is all definitely interesting but if anyone can handle it you can.” he said rubbing my feet.
I was not looking forward to Monday morning but it came anyway. I was a little thrown off not having to wear my uniform. What was Lucy planning to do? How was she going to explain me being her temporary receptionist? I decided to wear my burgundy pant suit. I pulled my hair into a pony tail and put on my diamond stud earrings that Lance gave me for my birthday. I gave myself the once over and headed out with coffee in hand. I was the first to arrive mostly because I needed to get acclimated with Jennifer's routine to get set up. Lucy had given me the code to open the main door. I remembered she would turn on the lobby lights, the printers and fax machines and finally her phone. She would sometimes check the machines to be sure they didn't need to be filled or have paper jams. I wanted today to go as smoothly as possible. It was quiet for a while since I was so early. But at 7:52am a phone call came in. Technically I didn't have to answer it yet since the office didn't open until 8:00am. I decided to answer in case it was Lucy or some other important person. “Knight, Hall and Hall, Maxine speaking, how can I help you?” “Who?” a man's voice said. “This is Maxine, can I help you?” “You can help me by transferring this call to Ashley.” he sounded aggravated. “I'm sorry she's not in right now, would you like her voice mail?” “Hell no!” he yelled. “I've been getting her voice mail all weekend! You tell her to call Frank or else!” he screamed and hung up.
I wrote the message down wondering what he meant by 'or else'. I felt miserably uncomfortable as people started arriving. Everyone was staring at me wondering how I got an overnight promotion. I just smiled and greeted everyone like it was a normal day. “It's nice to have someone actually speaking and being pleasant.” Will said. “Thank you.” I smiled. Ashley arrived and as usual she was on her phone. “Ashley, excuse me!” I called to her. She was busy with her phone call and completely ignored me. I got up to chase after her. “Ashley, excuse me!” I called to her again. “Yes?” she turned to look at me. “I have a message for you.” I said handing her the note I wrote. “For future reference you can just email me or leave me a voice mail.” she said and turned to step on the elevator. You're welcome I thought. “Maxine?” I heard a voice behind me. “Oh, hi Verene.” I said awkwardly. “What are you doing, where's your uniform?” she asked. “I got a promotion.” I told her. “Doing what?” “Filling in for Jennifer for a couple days.” “Why, where is she?” “She got fired.” “When over the weekend? She was here on Friday.” “Yes over the weekend.” “How do you get fired over the weekend?” I really wanted her to stop with the questions but I knew she wouldn't until she was satisfied. “I have to get back to the front.” I said. “Okay.” she said following me.
I sat down behind the desk. “So, what gives?” she asked me waiting to hear my explanation. “If you can wait until after work I'll tell you okay?” “What is this some big secret?” she asked. “Yes!” I told her. “Now can you meet me at that coffee place down the street at 4:45pm?” “Yeah, okay.” she said. “Good I'll explain it all to you then.” She nodded walking away. The day went on as normal and nothing seemed out of place until 4:11pm when a woman walked in carrying a briefcase. “Hi, I'm Elizabeth Kinley. I'm here to see Steve Hall.” she told me. “Of course, I'll let him know you're here.” I called into Steve's office and told him Elizabeth Kinley was here to see him. He didn't seem too enthusiastic and asked me to ask her to have a seat. She waited about fifteen minutes and finally Steve came out of the elevators. As he did two men suddenly came in the lobby doors. Elizabeth stood to shake his hand but he declined. “Why are you here Elizabeth?” he asked her. “I'm here on behalf of Lucy Knight.” she told him. “On what business?” “She asked me to fire you.” “Fire me? On what grounds?” “Theft.” she said flatly. He stared at her in disbelief then sat down in the chair nearest him. “You don't have to worry about getting your things they're being packed for you as we speak.” “Who's packing my things?” he demanded. “It's alright Steve relax.” “What is it that I'm supposed to have stolen?” he asked her. “Money.” she answered again flatly. “Are you taking me into custody?” he asked her. “Yes.” Steve turned to me and asked if I could call his wife and tell her to call Mark Garboni and tell him he'd been arrested. I told him I would. “This is crazy ya know?” he continued scratching his head. “Sometimes the worst treatment comes from the worst people who can sometimes be your own blood.” I said. He gave me a confused look as the two men handcuffed him and drug him out of the building.
I felt sorry for Steve he had been ambushed. But according to my research both he and Will seemed to be stealing from Lucy. I wondered why she only chose to fire Steve. “Mrs. Hall?” “Yes?” she said sounding afraid like she was the other day. “Hi, this is Maxine from Knight, Hall and Hall.” “Yes?” she said again. “I'm calling for Steve he asked me to have you call Mark Garboni. He's been arrested.” She was completely silent at first. “Mrs. Hall?” I said after a few seconds. “Why was he arrested?” “I don't know ma'am.” I lied. I wanted to tell her because I knew the more information she was armed with the faster they could help him. But it wasn't my place to say anything. His attorney would find out soon enough. After work I met with Verene. She was waiting for me when I got there. “Hi.” I said sliding into the booth. “Hello.” she said. “This is very good coffee.” she commented. “I've never been here before.” Verene waved to the waitress. “What can I get you?” she asked me. “I'll have a caramel frappuccino please.” “Well spill it.” Verene said when she walked away. I caught my breath trying to think of how to say this. “I'm just gonna give it to
you straight.” I said. “That's the only way I like it.” she smiled. “I'm working undercover for Lucy Knight.” I said straight out. She almost choked on her coffee. “What?” she wiped her mouth. “You heard me.” I said accepting my coffee from the waitress. “Will there be anything else?” she asked us. “Not right now thanks.” I told her.
I took a sip of my coffee. “So all this time we've been working together you've been spying on everyone?” she asked. “Not everyone Verene and not you.” “How am I supposed to know that?” “Because I just told you.” “I thought we were building a friendship Maxine. I told you about my son for God's sake.” “Verene I am your friend, this changes nothing...” “Who are you really then? “What's your real name?” “You know my real name, Maxine Skye.” “How did you come to work for Lucy Knight? I've only seen her twice in a year.” “She hired me, actually out of no where. It was a blessing in disguise.” “So is that what you really do, investigate people?” “I just opened my PI Firm a few months ago but before that I used to work for the Hadley Police station.” “As a detective?” “No I was a secretary.” “What made you want to do private investigation work?” “I was bored out of my mind, day in and day out doing the same thing. I wanted something else, I wanted something exciting.” “So did you take private investigation classes or something?” “Not really. I was a learn on the job type. I was a secretary in the detectives unit and I used to listen to them talk about the cases they were working on. I would hear them talk about how they were going to solve cases, clues they were using, people who looked good on certain cases. I studied a lot of their work before I took a leap of faith.”
Verene took another sip of her coffee without speaking and we sat there quietly for a few minutes. “So this is your first case?” “Yes.” “Do you like doing this so far?” “So far, yes.” “Well then I'm happy for you then.” “Thanks Verene.” I said standing up to give her a hug. “So what's happening in your investigation now?” “You didn't hear?” “Hear what?” “They arrested Steve Hall today for embezzlement.” “What!” “Yes.” “When?” “This afternoon, a lady named Elizabeth Kinley showed up with a couple guys and drug him off to jail. She told him he was being arrested for embezzlement.” “Really?” “Yep.” “This was because of your investigation?” “Yes I guess so...I did give her a report last Friday of everything that's going on in her place of business.” “What did you tell her?” Well, for starters I told her that her brother is using cocaine. It was all over his desk.” Wow, at work?” “Yep.” “She said he told her he was in rehab.” “Hhhmmm.” Verene sighed. “Will, and by the way he is her other brother's friend, has also been using the same accounts Steve has been using. That makes me wonder why she didn't choose to have him arrested as well.” “That is strange.” “I've also been overhearing Ashley's conversations and apparently she's working on a divorce case. Her client sounds like he's ready to kill his wife but Ashley says she's handling it.” “Wow.” “I even heard her tell him once that she knows the man she's sleeping with.” “Girl you are good!” Verene said. “We both laughed. “Are you going to be the receptionist for the rest of the week?” “I'm not sure. She told me it would be just a day or two but we'll see.”
Now that Verene knew my secret I could rest a little easier. It also meant that I would have to trust her to keep my secret. After my meeting with Verene I went home to take a hot bath and relax. Today was kind of stressful because it was the first time I saw the fruits of my labor. It was also the first time I shared what I was really doing with anyone. I have pretty good instincts especially about people and Verene seemed like a stand up person who wouldn't say anything. Lance's car was in my driveway when I got home which was surprising because he usually gets there much later than me. “Lance?” I called to him kicking off my heels and dropping my keys on the table. “In here.” I followed his voice to the bathroom. “Hey baby, what are you doing here?” I asked him. “Just wanted to see you is all.” he said kissing me. “You must have been reading my mind.” I told him. “Why?” “This is exactly what I was coming home to do.” Lance stood up to help me take off my suit jacket. “How was your day?” “Let's see, where do I start?” “Was it that bad?” “No, not really, let me just tell you.” I sighed. I unzipped my pants and slid them off. Lance undid my bra and I slipped off my panties and stepped into the warm water. I sat down and let the water surround me. The warmth seemed to envelop me and I was almost instantly relaxed.
“So?” Lance said impatiently. “Steve was arrested today.” I blurted out the words. “What? You're talking about her brother?” “Yes.” “Why?” “A woman showed up, Elizabeth Kinley, she...” “Elizabeth Kinley?” Lance asked cutting me off. “Yes Elizabeth Kinley, why, you know her?” “She's known as the shark around the precinct. She's never lost a case, and she usually takes on corporate cases much like this one. If she ever touches anything smaller her client is usually rich as hell or has a means to finances but sorry, go on.” “She sounds like someone Lucy would use. Lucy is a no nonsense kind of woman.” “Well, anyway, she showed up today with a couple guys and asked for Steve. I called him down and she explained why she was there. She told him he was being fired for theft of money. He asked me to have his wife call his attorney which I did.” “Wow.” Lance said. “Poor guy.” “He never saw it coming.” I said closing my eyes. Lance left me floating in the warm soapy water. Lance came back with a cup of herbal tea. “Thanks.” “Anything else happen today?” “Yes...I had to tell Verene, one of the cleaners, who I really was.” “What? Why?” “She started asking questions when she saw me acting as receptionist. But she's cool, I wouldn't have told her if I didn't think I could trust her.” “You know what you're doing Max.” Lance winked at me. “I don't feel like cooking, I'm ordering a pizza.” he said.
I finished my glass of wine, climbed out of the water and grabbed a towel to dry off. I put on just a silk robe and met Lance in the living room. I sat down next to him and we watched the 6:00pm evening news. “In other news, an arrest was made today at Knight, Hall and Hall.” the news announcer said. “Oh my God Lance look!” I elbowed him. “Today, Steve Hall was arrested at the Knight, Hall and Hall offices. We're told he was charged with embezzlement.” she continued as a picture of Steve popped up in the corner of the screen. “Isn't that a family owned business?” another announcer asked. “Yes it is, Bill, and apparently his sister Lucy Knight, who by the way is a good friend of the station, had some concerns about misappropriated funds and an investigation was launched.” she answered Bill as a picture of Lucy popped up next to Steve's. “Well this is an interesting story Holly, keep us posted.” “Sure thing Bill.” “Well!” I said. “You're the reason that this all happened.” Lance said answering the door. “What do you mean?” I asked following him. “Max, hand me my wallet please.” he said opening the door. “Hey man how you doing?” he asked the pizza guy. They exchanged pizza for money and Lance closed the door. “You ready to eat?” he asked me. “What did you mean, I'm the reason this all happened?” “You are Max. I just meant that because of your hard work, the case appears to be closed. You did your job.”
“Oh...Okay. Well thanks.” I said. “Can we eat now? I'm starving.” he said. I went to get the dishes and we each took some pizza. I got the whole bottle of wine. After dinner my cell phone rang. “It's Lucy Knight!” I said to Lance. “Well, answer it.” “What does she want?” I asked him. “You have to answer it to find out.” he told me sarcastically. “Hello?” I said. “Hello Maxine. I just wanted to thank you for your services and let you know I won't be needing you any more.” “Why?” I asked surprising myself with the blunt question. “You've done your job.” she said. “You've done what I asked you to do, you've found the thief.” she told me. “Too bad it was my brother.” she mumbled. “Will was also paying the same accounts. Why wasn't he arrested?” I asked since I was already on a roll. “Will was only following orders from his superior Steve.” she answered her voice wavering. There was a second o
f silence. “Thank you again for your hard work. I've already wired the rest of your money into your account and if you ever need a reference please, by all means, use me.” she said. “Thank you Lucy.” “Thank you.” she said and hung up. I sat there holding the phone. “Well? What did she want?” Lance asked me. “She wanted to thank me for my services. She said she wouldn't be needing me any more.” “Congratulations baby.” Lance said kissing my forehead. “Let's celebrate!” he said handing me another glass of wine. I took the glass from him but didn't drink. “Okay, what's wrong? I know that look.”
“I just wish I knew more.” I said. “More about what?” he asked. “Just more. Like I asked her why she didn't fire Will but she said he was only following Steve's orders.” “So? Sounds right, Steve was the head accountant wasn't he?” “Yes but...” “No but Max.” he said putting his fingers to my lips. “You did what she asked you to do right? She's satisfied that her problem has been solved. Don't get your big brain working overtime for no reason. You can relax until your next case comes up.” he said pushing the glass up to my lips. “Are you trying to get me drunk?” I asked. “Yes, I want to take advantage of you.” he smiled and I sipped. Lance and I stayed up late making a little love and in between watched a movie. I felt so good knowing that I'd completed my first case successfully and I had a lot of cash in the bank. That thought prompted me to check my bank account. I couldn't believe my eyes. She had wired me another $50,000. Since I was only living off of the money I made each week from the cleaning gig and other savings, my PI account had a total of $105,000.00. I was floored. I laid there next to Lance in the darkness listening to him sleep. Soon the sound of his breathing made me drift off into sleep too.
Maxine Skye, Private Eye Page 7